Ciabatta

This is quite possibly my favorite bread ever to make…

and eat of course.

The key to flavorful crusty bread is the pre-ferment step. Called anything from a poolish, sponge, or biga they all simply mean fermenting a portion of the flour with water and a small amount of yeast before making the complete recipe. Think of it as adding flavor much like sourdough but without having to maintain a starter. The longer the natural and added yeast eat away at the carbohydrates in the flour the more sour it will become.

This ciabatta’s pre-ferment is called a biga. Biga means “chariot” in Italian. Maybe this “chariot” carries the flavor to the bread?!

Cover with a shower cap. Turn the dough with the dough scraper 3 to 4 times throughout a 4 to 5 hour period (longer is OK).

Before turning…

After turning…

Cut the dough into two pieces (with your metal dough cutter) and handle it as little as possible as you loosely form it into a slipper. Let rise for 30 to 60 minutes.

Bake at 500 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes in a steamy oven. I create steam by placing a pan of water on the bottom rack of my oven and also spraying the loaves with a spray bottle filled with room temperature water. After 10 minutes, turn the oven down to 475 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes.

Strudel and Streusel are two friends living in different cities, sharing a love of baking (and butter) through this blog. With Streusel in Denver, and Strudel in Seattle, we've found our little site to be a great way to stay in touch, share recipes we love, and talk about experiences in our respective cities.